New use for radial Lekos

[ship]

So tonight I was taking apart the base cap to one of my newest old fixtures. Yet to figure out a brand - brass/copper looking ribbed sides to it and matches some Fresnels I have. Think it's Century or Century strand of the mid 1960's but after that nothing.

Anyway, following the MR-16 Gimbal ring concept of removing the track light base off a MR-16 fixture and mounting it to the plate on a 1920's box spot, than optimizing it and a lamp for the reflector (believe 40 degree in that case worked best - have to check a post from a year ago on the specific lamp), I believe it should be possible to do the same thing for Radial Leko fixtures and in this case even use LED and or color changing LED MR-16 lamps for such a thing if not use up to a 150w/120v MR-16 lamp in the fixture if not mounting a small transformer on cord plug or inside the lamp cap.

Still the Gimbal ring type of MR-16 housing once one removes the track lighting base is easy enough to jack up as needed to the focus of where the origional lamp will have been. At that point either switch lamp socket and wire into a new one sized to the lamp chosen or just use what comes with the lamp and high-temp splice to a grounded fixture whip.

Easy enough to do in all. Measure the filament height of the old lamp in it's socket above the base plate for the lamp plate mounting the socket. Measure where the filament on the new MR-16 fixture will sit and figure out how much to jack it up. Use the origional bench focus screws on the fixture to further bench focus I'm thinking a still 36 to 40 degree lamp would need in focusing.

The rest of the fixture stays as it is unless you need to remove the reflector in removing stray light.

Following that, you have a fixture that would be a good prop or household light without in a barbaric way turning a fixture into a table lamp stem.

Might look into doing that after this show.

 

[ship]

Photos of the concept and what brand and model number is this Leko? Further thoughts on the concept. First, the Juno Light or alternate brand Gimbal ring fixture - remove the yoke adjustment knobs and replace with lock washers and nuts to dog that focus once trial and error achieves gets you or it might slip/move.

Second on the concept, beam spread of the MR-16 lamp will be determined by the gate mechanism of the fixture - no doubt somewhere between 26 and 40 degrees in focusing all the reflected light from the MR-16 lamp without it getting blocked from the gate of the fixture. Short of that and you won't get an efficient beam of light.

Further, for houses a 100w MR-16 lamp might after the lenses turn out to be about the same as a 150w lamp in a house. A 50-75w lamp might be more useful as a household prop, or I note MR-16 lamps go up to at least 410w/82v but possibly 500w/12v. While candlepower isn't listed, it's possible that such a gimbal ring upgrade to a radial style Leko, once a lot of R&D to make it work is done, and perhaps a remote transformer is added, it could potentially become as powerful or more powerful than a say 500w EGE lamp that could most often be expected for use with the fixture but at a better color temperature and easily more Luminous output. This much less if the Ushio 500w/12v lamps are still available they would have 50% more lamp life.

Still for a household fixture, something in the range of 50 to 75w at 12v or even 120v as available in beam spreads for MR-16 lamp should be well enough sufficient in wattage to be a useful fixture for lighting a room as per a stage. This otherwise as mentioned, LED or not mentioned colored lens MR-16 lamps that could be colored or even change colors with auxilery equipment added which would be really cool yet would be nowhere near as warm as a line voltage lamp, and also be much more efficient than a stage and studio lamp.

I'm thinking Gimbal ring MR-16 upgrade to radial Lekos would be a great concept in keeping the fixture historic and not modifying anything more than the base plate plus grounding it and adding a proper strain relief, yet still keeping its historic features and even intended use.

Just as with removing three screws and adding a 2" spacer it's possible to make it into a 1 or 2Kw lighting fixture the Kliegl Dyna Beam - with more efficient filament, it should also constantly be a concept in lighting how can I make this function more efficient as opposed to making it a boat anchor.

 

[derekleffew]

So tonight I was taking apart the base cap to one of my newest old fixtures. Yet to figure out a brand - brass/copper looking ribbed sides to it and matches some Fresnels I have. Think it's Century or Century strand of the mid 1960's but after that nothing.

If you're speaking of the one pictured above on the left, it's probably a Major, or possibly a Hub, ellipsoidal reflector spotlight, and one of the worst ever created, optically. From as late as the early 1970s.

...Following that, you have a fixture that would be a good prop or household light without in a barbaric way turning a fixture into a table lamp stem. .../quote]I'm fairly sure I should be offended, but can't be absolutely certain, due to your lack of coherence. The antique fixtures of which you speak have far more decorative than illuminative value, regardless of how modern the light source. Using the fixture as a table lamp stem by non-destructively mounting a domestic socket and harp is no less appropriate than your approach. Mine is displayed as a conversation piece in my office; yours will be most-likely long forgotten on a shelf in a warehouse.

 

[ship]

We will fight that battle until the end of days and yep but with a on the battle and mention. Now wouldn't it have been better to fix up and donate and or at least make it into a lower wattage more efficient fixture? My 1920's era MR-16 box spots are primary lighting in my work room/garage in being at 50w just as bright as the non-reflector 400w line voltage G-30 lamps that the fixture was designed for. Good efficient lighting though the saw dust quickly covers the lenses. This much less use it to project foliage across your ceiling in say going HX-401 lamp? Now it's only a table lamp but with due respect a battle of smiles between us on that.